Give the Battle to the Lord

Acts 22 : 4 – 8, I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women, as also the high priest bears me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished. "Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?' So I answered, 'Who are You, Lord?' And He said to me, 'I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.' -NKJV


Soon after Jesus’ ascension into heaven great persecution broke out in Jerusalem. In that day, the Jews who followed the teachings of Jesus were considered a part of “The Way”. In John 14 : 6, Jesus told His disciples, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life.”

Perhaps you’ve read or heard that the battle we face as followers of Christ belongs to the Lord. While we may tend to take scripture at face value, most times, there is a much deeper meaning to them. Such is the case with the verses that I have shared.

Before we dig into the meat of God’s Word concerning spiritual persecution, allow me to bring you into the story. If you are a Christian, do you feel at times that you are persecuted for your testimony and faith in Jesus? There are so many reasons why Christians can be singled out in the workplace or at school, but the root is spiritual.

Jesus teaches us in the gospels that we’re in this world, but we’re not of it. Consequently, people will view us and our faith as different or strange. It is our spiritual differences that make us a target of people’s ignorance of God that can cause them to reject us. Once a person is rejected by another person or a group, those who are rejected can be made to feel like “outsiders."

Do you ever feel like you’re on trial when you’re around those who do not believe in Christ? Does it seem that you have to “prove yourself” to others who do not share your faith view? Do others exclude you from their social gatherings?

If we fail to recognize these signs as spiritual persecution, we may over time begin to take negative actions against us, personally. Now, we can dig into the meaning of today’s verses. As you read the verses, you will notice that Jesus asked Saul why he was persecuting Him.

Nowhere in the verses I’ve shared does Jesus mention the believers that Saul killed or imprisoned. Why did the Lord ask Saul the question in this matter since he was coming against the believers in Jerusalem? Our Lord is proving to us that the battle does indeed belong to Him and not us. The world doesn’t hate us; it hates the One in which we have placed our faith in order to save us.

When we know that the battle belongs to the Lord and not us, we will have more faith to trust God to fight for us. The enemy can pull us into his schemes when we allow battles to become personal. The persecution is against the Lord, not us. Be still when you’re persecuted and allow the Lord to defend you against the enemy.

Pastor Asa Dockery

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